Halo 3: Recon
by The Samurai of Hell
Summary: An ODST soldier fights to return the ruined city of New Mombassa to the hands of the UNSC. Based on the upcoming game.
1. Prepare to Drop

_New Mombassa, Africa (October 17, 2552)_

New Mombassa was peaceful. The sky shined brightly, and the buildings stood proud, a monument to the human achievements. Security cameras scanned the city's skies like hawks watched over their young.

_Camera 1(Tanaga): Clear_

_Camera 2 (Lumumba.0624): Clear_

_Camera 3 (MBaraki.2552): Clear—wait. Unknown airborne objects approaching. Zooming in._

MBaraki's scope examined the objects closely.

_MBaraki: They're approaching the city's surface. About to—_

As the objects landed, a great blue wave swept over the cameras, and eventually the city itself.

_Contact the UNSC! Unidentified objects have landed on the surface of New Mombassa, in the—_

The cameras were silenced. Darkness over came the city, sweeping over it like a cloud. For a moment, all was silent. The people at their homes didn't know what was happening. Then, there was a flash of light.

_Please remain calm._

_Expect delays._

_Obey posted limits._

_Pardon our dust._

_Danger: Flood zone._

_Keep it clean._

The city cameras flickered. MBaraki viewed the ruins of the city plaza. Palm trees and buildings lay scattered around, one of them crushing the small fountain in the middle.

_MBaraki: Contacting UNSC AI 5486-B: Superintendent._

In the upper right hand corner was the icon for the Superintendent. It was a green circle with two large eyes.

_Reinitialize…_

_Warning! Metropolitan disaster!_

_Checking power…_

_Checking comms…_

_Alerting emergency services!_

The Superintendent shuffled through the cameras. New Mombassa was in runs. Flames covered buildings, rubble was scattered around.

_Superintendent: Wait. Is that…_

Another one of the objects landed, running through the side of a building before crashing into a hotel across from the plaza.

_Superintendent: Motor vehicle crash! Fatality estimate: 99.99%. Acquiring vehicle. _

The camera scope zoomed in through the smoke.

_Superintendent: Vehicle unknown. Accessing N.M.P.D. database. No match. Accessing UNSC database. _

Without warning, the Superintendent stopped its search.

_Superintendent: Search terminated! System maintenance required! Extended event monitoring…_

A dark cloud began to surround the city. Within minutes, it was pouring rain. Thunder boomed and lightning cracked. The cameras went silent. A Covenant Phantom arrived from the left, its light scanning for human survivors. The Superintendent turned its attention back to the strange pod. It examined the object closely, watching smoke billow from the corners. Without warning, the opening popped off.

Silence filled the soldier's mind. He carefully took out his M7 caseless submachine gun and propped it above the pod, making sure that he wasn't seen. After a while, he stepped out, his military boots touching the wet ground. On his legs were bracers from way back when used to protect the lower appendages. Several items covered his body, including a backpack full of weapons and items. The soldier wore a black ODST helmet- large, like a bicycle helmet, with the visor in the shape of a t.

_So this is what happened after the rupture, _he thought.

The soldier cocked his gun, drawing his hand back harshly. As he checked his surroundings, light shone over him, followed by the sound of a Phantom. He quickly took cover as the Phantom passed by. After the light vanished, he returned to the open rain and ready to find his friends.

"There's a human here somewhere! Find him!"

The soldier stopped. Not too far from him was a pack of Brutes, Carbines and Spikers abound. Quickly, he drew his machine gun to his visor. The HUD on his helmet showed the Brutes clear through the darkness, highlighting key weak spots and vulnerable areas to aim.

The pack passed by him without even so much as an acknowledge, except for the leader of the pack, who carried a Fuel Rod Cannon on him. The leader roared and snorted before returning to his group.

_That was close, _the soldier thought.

The soldier turned his attention to the screen behind him. It flashed red, with the symbol of the Superintendent in the background and the words "Keep Right" and "Proceed with Caution" in big, bold letters.

"Guess I ain't got a choice. All right Marcus, you've gotten this far. Let's save this city." The soldier muttered.

Marcus ran in the direction of the signs, ready to do his duty and risk his life for the human race.

* * *

**Halo 3: Recon**

**New Hero**

**New Campaign**

**Prepare to Drop**

**Fall 2009**

_What you just read, friends, is a text representation of the trailer for the upcoming Halo 3: Recon. And since I'm good at writing (and delaying projects down the ass), I'm gonna write a fic on Recon. Given the sparse information that's provided, I'll try and keep my ears out for anything regarding the game and updates old chapters with that information ASAP. Now just read n' review, and prepare to drop!_


	2. Back to Basics

Halo 3: ODST

* * *

**I: Back to Basics**

_New Mombassa, October 22, 2552 (Military Calendar)_

Marcus watched the LED signs with fascination. One of them showed a hologram of a ship and the other showed a headset with waves coming out of the antenna. Suddenly, Marcus realized what he was supposed to do. He tapped the left side of his helmet.

"Come in, Lion's Valor, this is Private Marcus Carmine. Is anyone there? I've landed in the plaza of New Mombassa. I arrived here with a squad and don't know where they've landed. Please advise."

"Private, this is Ensign Walker. As of the moment, you will have to find them on your own. There are four beacons scattered around the city that show the current location of your squad mates. Find them, and then report back to us. Good luck Rookie."

"Wait!" Marcus interrupted.

"I'm new, and shouldn't you guys run over the basics, you know, so I live?"

"I guess so," Walker sighed, "Okay, just start traveling around the city and I'll give you intel."

Marcus nodded and began to walk through the city plaza.

"First things first. You can check the area and your mission objectives by opening up the PDA in your right pocket."

Marcus did as he was told. The PDA showed him as a bleeping dot and the city in the direction he was facing. In the bottom left hand corner it said, "Go through training."

"Okay, now click the red button on the right hand corner."

Marcus pressed it. There was a list of beacons he had found, currently at the number zero.

"Keep moving, kid. Now that you've got you're PDA figured out, it's time to learn a few combat rules."

Marcus ran down the street, keeping his PDA in his right hand at all times.

"You ever seen a Spartan, son?" the Ensign asked.

"Not really, sir. I've only heard of 'em. But I did see one about to step on Sergeant Fenix's face once." Marcus answered.

"Well if you'd seen 'em in action, then you'd know about their special hi-tech suits that enable them to heal from wounds while they stay out of the battlezone. As an ODST, you don't have the armor, but you can still heal, so long as you stay out of the fight for a while. Further, you don't have the ability to jump as high, run as fast, or have a motion tracker on you, nor can you dual-wield weapons like they can."

"Why can't I dual wield weapons? I mean, it's not that hard."

"Private, did you ever earn a medal for accuracy with dual-wielding back at the academy?"

"Well, no, but I don't—"

"Then shut the hell up and do as I say." The Ensign barked.

"Yes, sir." Marcus grumbled.

"Now it's time to show you something the Spartans don't have. Activate your helmet's third screen mode."

Marcus did as he was told. His HUD was highlighting every object in red and blue.

"That's the Visual Mode. This helps you identify your teammates and enemies during a fight so you don't end up team-killing."

"Is there anything else that I need to know about?" Marcus asked.

"No, that's it. Your objective is to know find out what happened to your squad. Once you've got enough intel report to us." The Ensign ordered.

Marcus turned off his comm and checked his PDA. There was a small green blip a klicks from his location, not too far away from an old rundown hotel. Marcus jogged to the hotel, surveying the area. There was no sign of a drop pod crashing or any indication that a soldier came through here. He tapped his helmet twice and checked things in the visual mode, but nothing came up. He turned his head toward the sky. Telephone poles were tangled together by something long and sleek. Marcus took out the combat knife in his backpack. With determination, he jumped at the telephone poles and cut them. The long object fell in his hands, revealing a slight dent and a mark of red lipstick near the trigger.

"This must be Romeo's," Marcus mused.

An image began to form in Marcus's head, thinking about the events that led Romeo's rifle to being caught in the telephone poles…

* * *

**First things first: yes, I realize that the Rookie isn't supposed to be as talkative as he is, but I decided that he should be like any of the other ODSTs we've seen so far: talkative, nervous, and curious. That said, since we haven't heard anything about the squadmates except for Romeo, I'm gonna try and play the other scenarios by ear. Once any new info comes about them, I'll try and update as soon as possible.**

**Make sure to preorder your Limited Collector's Edition of Halo Wars, which contains a code for the new Mythic Maps: Orbital, Assembly, and Sandbox!**

**Prepare to Drop.**


End file.
